Improvement in harvesters



gufi-12h taf atnt @Hire Letters .Patent'Nm 7 5,774, dated Ilfarch l24, 1868.

IMPROVEMENT IN HARVESTERS.

LLa- Straub referrer tu in tigen tetter' uteut ma uniting mrt of. tlg snm. l

Beit known that I,AISRAEL LANCASTER, of Baltimore, in the county of Baltimore, and State of Maryland, have inventeda new and useful Improvement in Reaping or Harvesting-IVI-acliines; and I do 4hereby declare that the following is-u full, clear, and-exact-description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, making apart of this specification, in which-- Figure 1 is an elevation of the driving-wheel and the reciprocating lever, which lever is shown in longitudinal section. I-

Figure 2 is an elevation of the driving-Wheel shaft, showing the position of the driving-wheel,reciprocating lever, and tightening-nuts upon it. A

In that class of reaping-maehines in which the cuttingbar is driven by means of a succession of short cams placed in the side or circumference of the master-wheel, there is an objection arising frourthe lost motion, between the cams andthe roller, the-'different bearings, and the vibration of the frame. As great rapidity of stroke is required, amounting to eight hundred per minute, the cam movement ceases tobe a cam movement, but4 resembles a succession of strokes made with a hammer, the cutting-bar being knocked from oneextremity of the stroke to the other, causing an excessivejarring of' the whole machine, and a waste of one-half of the whole power required to drive the cutting-bar, as experiment shows.

This rough movement has prevented the use of this'quality of machine almost entirely, although much more simple in its construction than those vgenerally in use. v

I overcome this'diiiculty, effectually preventing any lost motion whatever, as follows:

A, iig. 1, is the driving-wheel, containing a succession of short cams, placed in the side, at or near the circumference. These cams are seen at O, which isa representa-tion of. the hand, tire, or tread of the wheel,

extended in a straight line.- L is the shaft; F, the pivot-hlck'; E,:"the' vralorum-block, forming a part of the reciprocating lever D gg are pins passing throughthefuleinmbloclrE, and securely fastened into the pivotblock F; e c are friction-rollers, placed ou the lever D D, anvd'wvorkingvon the faeeof the ca'ms n n. 1L 11.; B is the cutting-bar, through an eye in the shank of which the levefDD-passes. An odd number of cams is placed on the wheel, so that-when' the roller c is on thepoint 29the roller e is in the depressed pzut S. As the drivingwheel revolves, the movement of the cutting-bar is obvious. At' Figure 2, L is the shaft, 'ni m thejournals for bearings, A the driving-wheel, E the fulcrum-block, D the reciprocating lever, g g the-fulcrum-pins; K and II are nuts Working 0n a screw-thread eut in the shaft. The nut H is screwed against the pivot-block F, iig. 1, holding the lever D D in position, with `the rollers c c pressing against the face of thel cams n n n n. The required amount of pressure is given by operating the nut H, as also any wearing away of parts is remedied by moving this nut. 7c is the tightening-nut, holding the mechanism securely in place, by being screwed firmly on the nut II. i

The cutting-bar can be thrown out of gear by turning back the nuts K and II until the rollers e c are removed from the track` of the cams. Y

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,.is

The method of-holding the reciprocating lever D'D up to its work, by means of nuts screwing on the driving.

wheel shaft, substantially as described.

I. LANCASTER.

Witnesses:

M. LANoAsTER,

F. W. Twin/mn. 

